Season’s first: Wildfire break out in Margalla Hills

Engulfs three to four acres of forest area; extreme dry and hot weather causes fires

ISLAMABAD: They say a spark can ignite an inferno but if truth be told the fury of nature does not require a matchstick and the scorching heat of the fiery sun can set dry bushes on fire which in some cases spread so fast that they are beyond control.

Such seems to be the case in the verdant landscape of Margalla Hills where unexpectedly a forest fire broke out on late Thursday morning which aided by gusty winds inflamed three to four acres of forest land.

According to latest reports, the fire which broke out at 11 am on Thursday morning could not be doused off completely till Friday evening near Kalinger Village as strong winds contributed to further flare up flames.



CDA officials claimed to have overcome the inferno near Daman-e-Koh till noon on Friday.

The CDA Forest Wing Urban-I Deputy Director Akhtar Rasool told The Express Tribune on telephone from Kalinger Village that authority’s fire-fighters could not ascertain the reason for the early outbreak of fire in Margalla Hills.

According to CDA forest department officials, the fire broke out in Margalla Hills behind Damn-e-Koh close to trail-5 and behind the Naval Headquarters on Margalla Hills near the Kalinger on Thursday which spread over an area of 3 to 4 acres in a very short period near Kalinger Village.

Till filing of this story, the fire was yet to be extinguished fully at this spot.



“High speed winds blowing at a velocity of 34 km per hour helped spread the flames,” Rasool, who was taking part in fire extinguishing operation, told The Express Tribune while talking on telephone from Kalinger Village.

He said that around 150 CDA forest officials were striving hard to overcome the fire adding that CDA staff was using manual bush beating technique to control the fire and a large portion of fire had been put out in Kalinger village. He also said that the fire had been completely stubbed out near Daman-e-Koh before noon.

The CDA official said usually fire season starts from April 15 to July -15, every year.

Before commencement of fire season, CDA establishes pickets besides hiring services of local villagers to carry out prompt extinguishing operation at Margallas Hills, adding that total 32 pickets are established from Bhara Kahu to D-12 during the fire season.  The fire incidents on Margalla Hills have become regular events during every summer and autumn due to presence of dry grass and flammable bushes. Generally, fire incidents at Margalla Hills are occurred during the driest months of the year including May, June, November and December but this year fire sparked off before peak summer season when grass and trees at Margalla Hills are verdant

Due to the rough terrain, it is nearly impossible to control the situation through conventional fire extinguishing vehicles and the CDA staff are used to indigenous and manual bush beating technique to control fire at accessible areas.

The CDA does not have aerial fire extinguishing tools or other modern technology to control forest fires at difficult and inaccessible areas.  The lack of proper safety processes and equipment is causing massive damage to the vegetation and wildlife on the Hills every year.

During fire season CDA usually hire services of local villagers on daily wages to put out fires. A CDA official told on the condition of anonymity that sometimes these villagers are also involved in fire incidents, whereas at the areas adjacent to hiking trails visitors are also responsible for outbreak of fires who throw cigarettes and other inflammable items in dry grass and bushes. The dry straws catch fires easily.

Chopper operation

The Express Tribune has learnt through reliable sources that on a formal request of Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) Mayor Sheikh Anser Aziz, the Secretary Cabinet Division assigned helicopters of rescue cell of aviation division working under Cabinet Division for emergency services to take part in CDA’s operation against fire at Margalla Hills on Friday evening.  CDA had also donated water buckets to rescue cell of aviation division for the purpose of pouring water in case of an emergency. 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 31^st, 2018.